[rating=8]
The Head and the Heart’s debut album, released on Sub Pop Records, opens with “Cats and Dogs,” a short, fleeting song with the refrain “my roots are grown / but I don’t know where they are.” It’s an astute line to announce the beginning of their career. Their music is wholly ingrained in the vernacular of neo-Appalachia folk/rock, but already shows a proclivity towards experimentation and growth. The ease of their sound, matched with the skilled arrangements across the album’s ten songs indicate accomplished musicianship, and while their collective lyrical voice may be somewhat vague, it’s undeniable that this is a powerful record and a spirited debut.
Fundamental to the success of these songs is the implementation of the sing-a-long chorus style popularized in much of folk music’s history. Whether it’s a simple, repeated line or a catchy “ooh” or “ahh” melody, the band injects the majority of their songs with an easily remembered part that, in turn, lends a timelessness to the work. It becomes a bit worn and stretched, though, over the course of the album, but the positive presence of this songwriting structure greatly outweighs its absence. It certainly invites the inevitable comparisons to fellow folk-rockers Mumford and Sons, but The Head and the Heart differentiate themselves by changing up their sound and melodies frequently. The jaunty “Coeur d’Alene” crashes into vaudeville-inspired “Ghosts,” which transitions seamlessly into the mesmerizing Americana balladry of “Down in the Valley.” One of the key elements of their success musically is Kenny Hensley’s work on piano. He introduces a whimsy and playfulness that helps to recover many of these tunes, which left to their own devices may stray into much too solemn territories.
It’s such a relief to hear harmony back in popular music after its seeming nonexistence over much of the last decade. Charity Rose Thielen lends her idiosyncratic and utterly entrancing alto to Josiah Johnson and Jonathan Russell’s lead vocals to create robust, alluring three-part harmonies that grip at the heartstrings. While at times they may get somewhat melodramatic in their repeated choruses, their vocals are consistently earnest and talented. Chris Zasche and Tyler Williams round out the band’s rhythm section, adding the right amount of punch and restraint.
While the members of The Head and The Heart are skilled craftsmen in their trade, it’s yet unclear as to the extent of their lyrical voice’s believability. On “Honey Come Home,” they sing, “Do you remember every block / every minute of every walk we used to take / we were so young so many years ago.” The melody is downright glorious and memorable, but the lyrics just don’t seem fitting. While the song discusses the dissolution of a relationship and the inexorable frustrations produced by such an ending, it’s hard to take these twenty-somethings seriously when they sing “we were young so many years ago.” When used correctly, nostalgia can be a seriously powerful thing, but it so often can be botched by erroneous use.
Despite the criticisms, The Head and the Heart is an excellent debut album. The musicianship is high and they clearly have strong songwriting capabilities. As the band tours this album for the next year or two, they will no doubt gain quite the following, as these songs are infectious, heartfelt and downright stunning. In lesser hands, this album could have become a hodgepodge of affected Americana, but The Head and the Heart prove their skilled hand at producing a sincere work of impressive talent.
